Dragon Valley (3)
“Damn. For something that goes down in one hit. I wanted to live without using much strength.”
Having crashed to the ground, Sung-tae grumbled as he glared at the Dragon King's corpse. How much effort had he put into maintaining that weakening magic all this time? It was impossible not to feel resentment toward the Dragon King for rendering all that effort for naught.
“But they called you the Dragon King? Why are you so lame? Your speech was straight out of some random extra #1.”
Clearly, when it first appeared, the thing had said, “Those who set foot on the Dragon King's land.” That implied it was the Dragon King, but its speech and actions didn't match the title at all. It had just spouted angry extra lines nonstop before vanishing in one shot.
Sung-tae muttered while staring at the chunks of the Dragon King's flesh scattered on the ground.
“What if you're not the real Dragon King after all? Just some extra? And the real one's somewhere else?”
[Human... Thank you...]
“Huh?”
Suddenly, a voice echoed in his mind. It was unmistakably the Dragon King's voice from before, but the rage-distorted tone was gone, replaced by a clear, cold one. Just the shift in emotion made it sound like a completely different person.
Sung-tae spotted the Dragon King's severed head amid the remains and headed toward it.
“No way... was that you talking?”
[Yes... mighty human... I had no idea someone like you existed... You are human, right?]
“Well, human for now... What's this? Why the sudden polite speech? You're not begging me to save you, are you?”
[No... How could I survive in this state? I'm already dead. I should have died long ago. That thing was just forcibly holding me together.]
“That thing?”
In that instant, Sung-tae noticed the Dragon King's eyes changing. The red pupils were fading like bleached fabric, gradually shifting back to green. It suited the head perfectly, as if that was its original color.
[It... dominated me... I fought it from within, but I couldn't control my own body... Tainted by its rage, I destroyed my own kingdom with my own hands...]
“Rage?”
[Fortunately, my kin sacrificed themselves to stop me, and those wounds kept me asleep for so long...]
“Wait, hold up. Before that—what'd you say? Rage?”
[Yes. It tainted me like rage incarnate...]
Judging by its current state, the Dragon King didn't seem like a bad guy. Sure, greedy toward humans, but among dragons, it must have been strong and worthy enough to be king.
But something had tainted and corrupted that Dragon King with rage... And calling it “rage itself”...
“No way... one of the Seven Deadly Sins?”
[Beware... It's vanishing from within me... slipping away... to someone... else...]
The life faded from the Dragon King's eyes, now fully restored to green. If that red was tied to the Seven Deadly Sins, and per the Dragon King's words, it had transferred to someone...
“Don't tell me it went to Leo or Garba!?”
He leaped into the sky and scanned the surroundings. Far off, he spotted Leo's group in a scuffle with someone. The moment he saw it, Sung-tae forgot all about the rage fragment and flew into a fury of his own.
“Roman... you cockroach bastard...”
Sung-tae clenched his fist. The punch, laced only with Ignis's curse magic now, made the air tremble. His voice burned with rage, but ironically, it carried a hint of joy too—the thrill that the bastard he had to kill with his own hands was still alive.
“You haven't died yet, huh?”
“Leo, don't reject me.”
“L-Lord Roman... why are you doing this?”
Leo backed away from Roman, whose eyes gleamed with madness as he approached. Though it was all an act, this was nothing like the gaze she knew—it instinctively filled her with dread.
“Step back, human.”
“Stay out of it, geezer!”
“G-Geezer!?”
“You're not my type!”
As Roman shouted, Garba's position exploded. Stunned momentarily by “geezer,” she instantly shifted behind him, reaching to subdue him. But...
“Kuh!”
“Don't touch me, filthy fly's subordinate.”
A red aura erupted from Roman's body, blocking Garba's approach. She yanked her hand back the instant it grazed the aura, but her fingertips were already burned as if scorched by fire.
Garba's mana served both offense and defense. Yet Roman's red aura ignored it entirely, inflicting severe burns.
“Come here. Leo—or should I say, Elienor? Let's leave together.”
“Lord Roman, why are you—?!”
“Shut up! Just obey me!”
No more pretense. Leo recoiled in fear at his actions, and Roman calmed his anger, feigning regret.
“Sorry, Leo. The situation got the better of me.”
“What situation? Where's my senior?”
“No need to care about that fly. Come, let's go. To our world alone.”
Roman extended his hand, but Leo retreated further, dodging it.
“Calling my senior a fly? What are you talking about?!”
“Leo... You're taking his side in front of me?”
Roman, deluded and betrayed by his own imagination, shattered his mask when his one-sided faith went unrequited.
“After all I've done for you! You bitch!”
A mask that wouldn't break in his normal state. But he wasn't normal now—just a wretched old man dominated by rage.
“If I can't have you, I'll destroy you.”
“Lord Roman, what—?!”
Roman unleashed his full mana. Crimson like his fury, it spread through the valley—visible even to ordinary eyes without mana sight, superior in quality and quantity to what he'd used against Sung-tae.
“Die!”
“This way!”
An explosion rocked the valley. Just before it hit, Garba yanked Leo into her mana embrace. Alone, she could have easily escaped. But Leo was precious to her lord. Garba shielded her, sacrificing herself.
Her black mana, which usually enhanced her body and served as a weapon, hardened like steel, protecting them from the blast.
“Kuh...”
“Lady Garba?”
But the explosion was too intense. Most of her mana depleted blocking it; without her body strengthened by Sung-tae's life force, she would have died from mana exhaustion. Internal injuries made her cough up blood violently.
“Cough!”
“Come here. Last warning. Leo. Leave with me.”
“You're... not Lord Roman!”
Leo drew her sword and stepped forward. As she swung at the approaching Roman, memories of his past kindness made her hesitate briefly.
In that split-second gap, Roman pointed at her greatsword, triggering a small explosion that shattered it.
“So it comes to this. You said dreams can't come true, huh.”
Roman's mana condensed around the three. As it thickened, the space filled with vivid crimson, like a fog of fresh blood.
“I loved you. Let's die together.”
“Die alone, you old fart.”
“Senior!”
In that moment, Sung-tae's fist smashed into Roman's skull. Proving it was no illusion, the head burst like a watermelon, spraying blood.
“A bit late. Almost had a disaster there.”
“Senior...”
“Garba!?”
Leo approached him, but Sung-tae brushed past to the fallen Garba.
“Garba! You okay!?”
“Ugh... M-My lord. I'm... f-fine...”
Sudden mana depletion had ravaged her internals, but her body, infused with Sung-tae's life force, was tougher than anyone's. The wounds were already healing rapidly.
“...”
Leo silently watched the two. With a small sigh, she turned to Roman's corpse.
“!?”
Roman's corpse, head gone, suddenly lurched upright. His lingering red mana gathered where his head had been, forming a round crimson orb in its place.
“Shut up.”
Roman's form vanished from the world. The valley behind where he'd stood disappeared with him, followed by a delayed blast of air whipping through.
Sung-tae, fist extended, cradled Garba protectively with his other arm. He brimmed with rage.
“Was it you? The one who did this to Garba?”
No one left to answer. His rage-filled punch had long since obliterated it.
But...
Sung-tae's fist slammed into the rage again. The red aura scattered from the impact, but mockingly reformed, continuing.
I thought I'd gotten a useful body, but you smashed it. However...
The red aura dispersed into mist, enveloping Sung-tae.
“In your dreams.”
Even Sloth couldn't easily breach Sung-tae's inner world, but his current rage matched the red aura perfectly. Riding that fury, it slipped into his body effortlessly.
Not that Sung-tae minded—he'd wanted this.
“You'll regret entering me. Leo, look after Garba.”
“Huh? Y-Yes! Senior!”
Handing Garba to Leo, Sung-tae closed his eyes. To eradicate the red aura thoroughly in his inner world.
With Sung-tae standing there eyes shut, Leo bitterly supported Garba.
“Senior...”
“Mukkebi! Where's that thing?”
“Over there.”
Sung-tae's inner world blazed with intense red light. The intruding red aura was paler than the world's glow, easy to spot.
A realm of pure crimson sky and sea—like lust had burst free, but drier, harsher, ready to incinerate everything.
“There it is.”
“Sung-tae, calm down.”
“Hoo... yeah. Gotta calm down. Garba's okay now...”
Sung-tae took deep breaths, settling his mind. The crimson filling his inner world faded.
Then a familiar voice called out.
“H-Hey! H-Help me!”
“Roman?”
Roman, buried in the red aura, barely poked his head out, reaching for Sung-tae. His soul was tainted red in patches.
“P-Please... it hurts so much...”
“Don't worry. I'll save you soon.”
“Sung-tae, want me to eat it?”
“Nah. I got this.”
Sung-tae clenched his fist. Past intruders, especially mental entities, had been beyond physical reach—Mukkebi's domain. But now was different.
Those encounters came after engraving magic on his armor, when physical force failed against spirits. Now, with the magic gone, his overflowing mental energy—enough to affect even Demon Kings—surged instinctively.
“When you enter someone else's house...”
Sung-tae charged the red aura. Staring down Roman and it, he thrust his fist.
“...be quiet! That's basic manners!”
Unlike reality, no storm or quake erupted. But the instant his fist extended, the red aura melted like snow under the sun.
“Save...”
“Hoo. What a nothingburger.”
The red aura vanished. With it, Roman's soul. Feeling total annihilation was too harsh, Sung-tae prayed it had gone to the afterlife instead.
“Rebirth in paradise, old man.”
Even if he wanted to save him, the corruption made it impossible. Better a quick, painless end.
At least, that's what Sung-tae thought.
“But wasn't that Wrath? I figured it'd be strong, but it's weaker than Sloth. Even weaker than Envy.”
“Sung-tae.”
Sloth had at least corrupted the World Tree and put up a fight. Wrath corrupted the Dragon King too, but it fought fiercely within, resisting domination. If overcome, it'd be trapped like Roman.
Sloth and Envy even formed bodies to fight in reality, but Wrath fizzled out pathetically.
“Kinda lame for a Deadly Sin.”
“Sung-tae!”
“Whoa!”
Mukkebi, watching from the side, looked up at the sky. Now calm, the inner world had returned to normal.
Pointing where the red aura had been, she said,
“That wasn't it.”
“Wasn't what?”
“Not Wrath.”
“...Not Wrath?”
The thing that corrupted the Dragon King wasn't Wrath? Sung-tae leaned in to hear more.
“You saw it in Leo's inner world before. Same type.”
“Leo's inner world... that evil spirit?”
“Yeah. Exactly. The thoughtforms the Sins create and imbue with purpose to build their bodies.”
Mukkebi's face darkened with worry. Recalling the red aura, she couldn't help it.
“Just a tool to gather power. A mere fragment of Wrath.”